South by Southwest: 10 Music Highlights So Far

AUSTIN — The massive South by Southwest music festival has officially descended upon Austin. Every downtown street is crowded
with musicians, managers, label reps, publicists, journalists and curious music fans. And pretty much everybody is looking
for something cool.

CMT showcased Ashley Monroe and young duoStriking Matches on Tuesday night (March 12) at the Empire Control
Room, sharing the night with MTV and VH1. With a critically acclaimed new album released last week, Monroe is one of the festival’s
few country artists to make an appearance this year. Thanks to her sterling voice, clever songs and a wry sense of humor,
she’ll probably spend as much time doing interviews this week as any hot indie band.

Striking Matches opened the night
with a handful of songs, including “When
the Right One Comes Along.” Fans of ABC’s Nashville will recognize that one. Although their career is just getting
off the ground, this Nashville-based duo charmed the audience by infusing their appealing stage presence with wide-eyed wonder
at the crazy scene that is SXSW.

Through Sunday, hundreds of bands will be competing for Austin’s attention. Although
most artists have one official showcase, some have two — and others are just crashing the party. And speaking of a party,
there’s one behind every door, celebrating radio stations, magazines, vodka, states other than Texas, etc.

Here are
some of my personal highlights of SXSW so far.

Hurray for the Riff Raff:
While wandering through the trade show on Wednesday, this laid-back trio attracted me with interesting melodies and the sweet
voice of Alynda Lee Segarra. Simple tunes like “Junebug Waltz” and “Fiddlesticks” proved you don’t need an elaborate setup
to make a big impression.

Jared the Mill: Naturally
you’ll encounter busking at SXSW. Most of it is forgettable, but the exception is Jared the Mill, a band that drove
in from Phoenix and performed Tuesday. Whenever somebody’s playing a washboard on a street corner, it’s hard not to notice.
Their infectious playing and underdog story helped pull in dozens of passersby, including me. Made up of five young guys,
this hungry band is playing an afternoon showcase on Friday at the Hickory Mill in downtown Austin.

The
Lone Bellow: I caught this Brooklyn-based roots band by coincidence on Wednesday afternoon, walking past a place called
Hangar. (Indeed it looks just like a miniature airplane hangar, right in the middle of downtown Austin. The stage is on top,
offering a marvelous skyline view.) You can easily hear their traditional country influence on songs like “You Don’t Love
Me Like You Used To.” Incredibly, they are playing 17 shows this week!

MilkDrive:
This Austin-based bluegrass band held down the fort Wednesday at the historic Driskill Hotel. Bluegrass is scarce at SXSW,
too, so it was a treat to see these four gentlemen swapping fiddles and mandolins like it was no big deal. In particular,
I enjoyed hearing the swelling title track to their new album, Waves.

Daniel
Romano: I’m a big fan of this Canadian songwriter’s new album, Come Cry With Me, so I didn’t want to miss his
Wednesday set at the Velveeta Room. Typically, this venue is a comedy club, and I did find myself laughing at the deadpan
delivery on songs like “Chicken Bill.” Like many classic country stars, Romano plants himself at center stage and stays there.
It’s almost like witnessing a modern-day George Jones delivering weepers
like “Time Forgot (To Change My Heart).”

SHEL: On the east side of Austin,
a bunch of hole-in-the-wall places set up stages for casual day parties. My colleagues and I were able to hear the sister
group SHEL at Shangri La. My favorite song during their Wednesday set was “Moonshine Hill,” which they started to write after
buying moonshine at a convenience store. “We wrote the rest of the song the next day,” one sister quipped.

Turnpike
Troubadours and Dirty River Boys: These two bands are already
drawing thousands of fans to their shows in Texas and Oklahoma, thanks to well-crafted songs, wailing fiddles and charismatic
lead singers. Playing back-to-back at the White Horse, their Tuesday night show felt more like a Saturday night. The White
Horse is a low-key country bar where you can get whiskey on tap or a local microbrew. It’s off the beaten path but well worth
seeking out.